The origin of the name Bihor is uncertain, except that it likely takes its name from an ancient fortress in the current commune of Biharia. It possibly came from vihor, the Serbian and Ukrainian word for "whirlwind", or Slavic biela hora, meaning "white mountain." Another theory is that Biharea is of Daco-Thracian etymology, possibly meaning two possessions of land in the Duchy of Menumorut. Another theory is that the name comes from bour, the Romanian term for aurochs. The animal once inhabited the lands of northwestern Romania. Under this controversial theory, the name changed from buar to buhar and to Bihar and Bihor.
Demographics
In 2002, Bihor had a population of 600,246 and the population density was 79.56/km2. 48.6% of its population lives in urban areas, lower than the Romanian average.
Romanians - 67.38%
Hungarians - 25.96%
Roma - 5.01%
Slovaks - 1.22%
Germans - 0.19%
On 31 October 2011, Bihor had a population of 575,398 and the population density was.
Romanians – 66.96%
Hungarians – 25.27%
Roma – 6.33%
Slovaks – 1.1%
Germans – 0.13%
By religion
99.4% of the county's population are Christian and of these:
Prior to World War I, the territory of the county belonged to Austria-Hungary and mostly was contained in the Bihar County of the Kingdom of Hungary. The territory of Bihor County was transferred to Romania from Hungary as successor state to Austria-Hungary in 1920 under the Treaty of Trianon. After the administrative unification law in 1925, the name of the county remained as it was, but the territory was reorganized. In 1938, King Carol II promulgated a new Constitution, and subsequently he had the administrative division of the Romanian territory changed. 10 ținuturi were created to be ruled by rezidenți regali - appointed directly by the King - instead of the prefects. Bihor County became part of Ținutul Crișuri. In 1940, part of the county was transferred back to Hungary with the rest of Northern Transylvania under the Second Vienna Award. Beginning in 1944, Romanian forces with Soviet assistance recaptured the ceded territory and reintegrated it into Romania. Romanian jurisdiction over the entire county per the Treaty of Trianon was reaffirmed in the Paris Peace Treaties, 1947. The county was disestablished by the communist government of Romania in 1950, and re-established in 1968 when Romania restored the county administrative system.
Economy
Bihor is one of the wealthiest counties in Romania, with a GDP per capita well above the national average. Recently, the economy has been driven by a number of construction projects. Bihor has the lowest unemployment rate in Romania and among the lowest in Europe, with only 2.4% unemployment, compared to Romania's average of 5.1%. The predominant industries in the county are:
Textile industry.
Food and beverages industry.
Mechanical components industry.
Metallurgy.
In the west side of the county there are mines for extracting coal and bauxite. Crude oil is also extracted.
The coat of arms of Bihor County was adopted in 1998, and is a quarterly shield featuring a castle, five wheat stalks with a ribbon, and a scroll with the text of Deșteaptă-te, române!, covered with a fess featuring three fish. It was subject to redesign in 2013 after it was discovered by a local teacher that the text on the scroll was erroneously written in Greek, rather than Cyrillic or the Latin alphabet. The county has no significant history with Greece.
Politics
The Bihor County Council, elected at the 2016 local government elections, is made up of 35 counselors, with the following party composition:
Administrative divisions
Bihor County has four municipalities, six towns, and 91 communes. Municipalities
Beiuș
Marghita
Oradea – capital city; 196,367
Salonta
Towns
Aleșd
Nucet
Săcueni
Ștei
Valea lui Mihai
Vașcău
Communes
Historical county
Administration
The territory of the county was divided into eleven districts
Within Bihor County there were three urban localities: Oradea and urban communes Salonta and Beiuş.
Population
According to the 1930 census data, the county population was 510,318, ethnically divided among Romanians, Hungarians, Jews, Czechs and Slovaks, as well as other minorities. By language the county was divided among Romanian, Hungarian, Czech, Yiddish, as well as other minorities. From the religious point of view, the population consisted of Eastern Orthodox, Reformed, Greek Catholics, Roman Catholics, Jews, Baptists, as well as other minorities.
Urban population
The county's urban population consisted of 102,277 inhabitants, 54.8% Hungarians, 26.4% Romanians, 15.4% Jews, 1% Germans, as well as other minorities. As a mother tongue in the urban population, Hungarian predominated, followed by Romanian, Yiddish, German as well as other minorities. From the religious point of view, the urban population consisted of 31.5% Reformed, 20.6% Jewish, 19.3% Roman Catholic, 17.5% Eastern Orthodox, 9.1% Greek Catholic, 1.1% Lutheran, as well as other minorities.
